Queen Elizabeth’s notable crowns and tiaras from her reign

People reports that Queen Elizabeth acceded to the throne in 1952 and wore several royal headpieces over the course of her reign, from state crowns to personally commissioned tiaras. The Imperial State Crown is worn at the end of a coronation to mark the beginning of a new reign; the version used by Elizabeth was made for King George VI in 1937 and is set with 2,868 diamonds, 17 sapphires, 11 emeralds, 269 pearls and four rubies.

Elizabeth had it lightened for her 1953 coronation by lowering the arches. She often preferred other pieces for formal occasions, notably the Vladimir Tiara, the Girls of Great Britain & Ireland Tiara and the Diamond Diadem — the latter made in 1820 with 169 pearls and 1,333 diamonds and worn on her way to the 1953 coronation and for nearly every State Opening of Parliament.

She also commissioned pieces such as the Brazilian Aquamarine Tiara in 1957 and the Burmese Ruby Tiara in 1973, the latter fashioned from diamonds of the deconstructed Nizam of Hyderabad Tiara and rubies given to her as a wedding gift from the people of Burma. In the 2018 BBC One documentary The Coronation, Elizabeth reflected on wearing the nearly 3‑lb Imperial State Crown: “You can’t look down to read the speech; you have to take the speech up.

Key Topics

Culture, Queen Elizabeth, Imperial State Crown, Diamond Diadem, Vladimir Tiara, Burmese Ruby Tiara